MI Captain Hardik Pandya led from the front with a career-best spell of 5/36 at the Ekana Stadium on Friday. The 31-year-old backed his call to bowl first with his effort in the LSG vs MI clash on Friday. On a sticky surface, Pandya led the way with his variations, putting LSG batters in a fix to restrict them to 203/8.
InsideSport takes a look at some of his best bowling spells in IPL.
Hardik Pandya Best Performances in IPL
- 1. 5/36 vs LSG, IPL 2025
1 win in 3 games. Rohit Sharma is injured, and LSG is in full flow after a fast powerplay. Enter Hardik Pandya. In his best bowling display, the MI skipper accounted for four of the six top-order wickets to bring his side back into the contest. It was his first fifer in T20s, and he also became the first captain to do so in IPL.
- 2. 3/24 vs CSK, IPL 2018
Season opener against your arch-rivals. There’s no bigger game than MI vs CSK in the IPL and Hardik Pandya stamped his authority in style. Defending 165 on a tricky Wankhede surface, Hardik dismissed the danger man Shane Watson, followed by the wicket of Suresh Raina. He later returned to dismiss Mark Wood to finish with figures of 3/24 in his spell. In a game where the other quicks conceded at more than 9, Hardik conceded at 6, along with his three strikes.
- 3. 3/20 vs CSK, IPL 2019
Hardik Pandya saved his best for CSK, and this time it was again at the Wankhede. Defending 170 to win, Hardik broke the back of CSK’s chase with a triple strike to ensure a healthy MI win. The all-rounder dismissed CSK skipper MS Dhoni, Ravindra Jadeja and Deepak Chahar. Earlier, Hardik also chipped in with an 8-ball 25, to power his side to a strong finish.
- 4. 3/31 vs SRH, IPL 2024
Hardik Pandya had a difficult year in 2024, but it did not stop the MI skipper from chipping in with a good show. Against the flying Sunrisers, Pandya again chipped in with a three-wicket haul, dismissing Nitish Reddy, Marco Jansen and Shahbaz Ahmed. SRH could only muster a below par 173, which MI chased down with ease.
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